Florida Atlantic
It is so much fun to consider Lane Kiffin’s head coaching career. Never has a coach, so acknowledged for acumen on at least one side of the ball, done so poorly as a head coach. In contrast, Lane did very well last season at FAU.
He turned around a team that had won only three games a season earlier. He added some transfers and JUCO players but it was mostly the same roster at starters. He led the Owls to a CUSA conference championship by destroying North Texas 41-17. FAU did not earn much of a bowl and faced a mediocre opponent in Akron. Still, they won against the Zips and finished the season at 11-3.
On the basis of the 2017 performance, they have been ranked near the Top 25 by some sources and at No. 19 by one. We don’t get it. The CUSA is weak and in last year’s summer workouts, Kiffin’s roster was mistaken for high-schoolers attending a camp. The best team the Owls beat last season was probably MTSU.
Until Lane’s team beats a Power Five school, any talk of FAU being a top 25 team is just foolishness.
West Virginia
West Virginia can score points. Except for Kansas, who can’t in the Big 12? Will Grier has overcome his experience as a Florida Gator and become a solid QB. Betting on Grier in a shootout appears to make sense. The problem is weak defenses are a liability, even in the Big 12. Just ask Kliff Kingsbury how many games can be won on offense alone.
West Virginia head coach, Dana Holgorsen has never been a fan of defense. For the past three seasons, Holgo keeps saying his teams will be better on defense. So far, there has been little progress. Being a better Big 12 defense can still mean being porous.
West Virginia is projected as a solid top 25 team, with some rankings having them at No. 19 and even No. 10. Maybe the Mountaineers are a top 25 team, but nothing more.